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Opinion | Trust ourselves, but not be alone Israel today

2022-03-26T23:23:10.715Z


There is no substitute for an independent and strong IDF and a determined defense of our security interests.


Israel needs to learn two lessons from the war in Ukraine, and in order to understand them, it is important to first look at the context in which it broke out: Difficulty agreeing on the use of force in the international arena, entanglement in long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and colossal failure to intervene in the Syrian civil war - to the point of inviting Russia to make order and failing to respond to its invasion of Ukraine and separatist provinces.

At the same time, the internal social fabric - mainly in Europe but also in the US - began to be undermined as a result of tremendous demographic changes, rising populist politics and identity politics. Began to suffer from polarization, extremism and lack of trust, which manifested themselves in dangerous social and political crises.

Then came the war in Ukraine, reminding us of the potential power of the West, believing in the righteousness of its path and mobilizing for its worldview.

The West has demonstrated this month the ability to organize quickly, homogeneity in response and the ability to play an economic, cultural and diplomatic iron fist.

Also impressive is the fact that the Western business sector, for its plethora of technology giants, is crowding lines with governments and public opinion, further increasing Russia's isolation.

So what did we learn?

On the one hand, the West refuses to enter into a direct war with Russia on Ukrainian soil.

The tragedy of the Ukrainian people is a fait accompli.

The West contributes its share of aid in arms, and of course in economic sanctions, but in practice - the Ukrainians are left alone.

Not only that, but it seems that the Ukrainian fighting spirit is the one that brought about a determined and immediate Western response, although, as mentioned, not military.

Therefore, the obvious lesson is that we Israelis have no one to rely on but ourselves, our national resilience and the constant fortification of our military power.

On the other hand, we have learned that despite everything, the West is not weak.

When the Democratic bear wakes up, it has enormous potential for harm to countries it seeks to weaken.

Anyone who has taken from the last month only the lesson of "a people alone will dwell" suffers from dangerous blindness, because we have learned one more thing: public opinion in the West is of immense significance, and Western international politics is alive and kicking.

A perception that Israel is operating in a vacuum is a dangerous illusion.

The growing extremist trends among the young public in Western countries against Israel require thought, investment and a comprehensive strategy.

Therefore, a conception of both is required here.

There is no substitute for an independent and strong Israeli army and a determined defense of our security interests, but we must not be confused: we are part of the Western Democratic peoples family.

Our economy, security and future also depend on our relationship with Western countries, and on the concept of legitimacy and freedom of action we get from them.

Were we wrong?

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Source: israelhayom

All news articles on 2022-03-26

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